Jacques-Alaixys Romao, commonly known as Alaixys Romao, is a French-Togolese professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Stade Reims in the Ligue 1. At international level, he is a member of the Togolese national team.
Club career
Early career
Romao started his professional career with Toulouse FC, but only managed appearances for the B team in 2004–05 and was then transferred for free to Louhans-Cuiseaux in the Championnat National, the French third tier.
In the 2007–08 season, he was traded for free to Grenoble and his career took off. A solid and rugged defensive midfielder, Romao proved a valuable asset for Grenoble. His first season with the club saw him appear 30 times in Ligue 2 with 2 goals and 10 yellow cards topped with a promotion to Ligue 1. In 2008–09, he made 37 appearances, 32 of them as a starter in Ligue 1 and managed to avoid the drop. The next season, Romao made 29 appearances for Grenoble and 2 assists. However, Grenoble was not able to avoid the drop this time and was relegated.
Lorient
Romao was then signed by FC Lorient in July 2010 for a reported fee of 8,000.00 GBP. In the 2010–11 season, his first with FC Lorient, Romao made 33 appearances in Ligue 1 with a goal and 2 assists, 2 appearances in the Ligue Cup and 2 appearances in the French Cup competition with 1 goal. Romao made another 32 appearances as a starter in the 2011–12 season with a goal and an assist, but also with 11 yellow cards and 2 red cards.
On 31 January 2013, Romao was signed by Marseille. According to L'Équipe, the transfer fee paid to Lorient was €2 million and the duration of Romao's contract was 3.5 years. At the end of his contract in the summer of 2016, he was released by the club, having made 127 appearances in all competitions, scoring 4 goals.
On 31 August 2016, Romao joined Greek club Olympiacos, signing a two-year contract with the option of another year. At the end of the season, he helped the club to win the 7th consecutive Super League title. On 16 August 2017, he scored his first international goal with the club, as Olympiacos came from behind, in first half, to win 2–1 against HNK Rijeka in added time for the 1st leg of UEFA Champions League play-offs. On 16 September 2017, he signed a new contract with the club, which would keep him at the club till the summer of 2020.
Reims
On 24 July 2018, Romao joined French club Stade de Reims, signing a two-year deal with the option of another year.
